Clan Saotome
by SSTR87
Summary: A Panda, Monkey, Dragon and Boar knock on the door... Kiri's Elite ANBU Team Panda arrives to get Ranma a fiance! What is going on here? With Ukyo and Ryu as family Ranma will have his work cut out for him. Ranma x harem (comedy style)


It never should have occurred but it did... And because of this things would never be the same again...

Ranma with a strange appearance arrives to meet the Tendo Girls

The day had suddenly taken a turn for the worse. What had been a bright sunny day with light white clouds and a bright blue sky suddenly darkened over and the clouds blocked out the sun, the wind howled and swirled about in violent patterns while lightning flashed through the darkness, granting momentary flashes of brightness.

Soun Tendo, seated at the head of the low table, his three daughters surrounding him, frowned a bit as he considered the strange weather. "Hm, very peculiar," he remarked in a rare moment of seriousness.

Immediately facing Soun were his equally puzzled daughters, looking both at the weather outside as well as at the man which had summoned them for some important family meeting. Kasumi, age nineteen, was the eldest, a tall young woman with long black hair tied in a loose ponytail fashion. She was currently wearing a simple cream on brown house dress and a light-colored ribbon in her hair while her pleasant smile was trained on her father.

Next was Nabiki, age seventeen, the middle sister was a quick-witted girl, dressed in a formal kimono at present, suspicion in her eyes as she considered what her father could be announcing. Her hair was shot and cut in a pageboy fashion, it's dark brown, near black, color was at odds with Kasumi's chestnut brown or her youngest sister's blue shade.

Last was Akane, age sixteen, the baby of the family and also the biggest tomboy of the three girls, currently wearing a light yellow karate gi with a base black belt. Her hair was long, flowing down her back like her eldest sister, yet loose rather than in a ponytail. Her face held confusion as she looked up and down at her sisters with concern.

"So, what's this about, father?" Nabiki asked, bringing the meeting to a start and taking the lingering glares on the outside weather back into the room at present.

Soun took a moment to sip at a cup of steaming tea before giving off a sigh and looking up to his three girls. "Many years ago, my training partner and I made a pact that we would engage our children and unite our schools," he began joyously.

A heavy peal of thunder rang out and shook the house violently. While the lights flickered in an ominous manner, the girls found that they were struck speechless. "I received a letter today that my good friend Genma will be arriving with his son, Ranma!" The pride in the man's voice was actually a bit infectious, yet the girls were more curious about something else.

"Engagement?!" Akane barked in irritation, her eyes narrowed on her father. 'Seriously, who does formal engagements in this day and age?' she considered mentally.

"So, this Ranma. What's he like?" Nabiki wondered aloud to her father who merely shrugged.

"I hope he's not younger. I don't like younger guys," Kasumi offered sweetly while looking at the post card her father was setting on the table.

"Well, actually. I don't know anything about the boy. I've never met him," Soun offered with a lame chuckle.

Nabiki frowned as she fingered the card and began to read the information on it. "It says this card is coming from China. Maybe he's cultured, since he's been traveling to other countries?" she offered, hoping against hope that things cold work out in a beneficial way.

At that moment a heavy, thudded knock sounded from the main door. Nabiki and Soun, both excited and interested, rushed for the door the daughter managing to open it first. The sight that befell her was not something she was quite expecting. Lightning flashed and she was able to make out the face of a panda...

Better yet, as she took in the form of the looming presence, she realized it was a man wearing a formless black shawl, a cover that fitted like a cape and covered everything about his body with the sole exception of a panda mask and dingy kerchief. The man stepped forward and into the room with little regard to the girl at the door.

It was like touching a live wire, staring at the man, and it was sending currents of terror through the girl's spine as she parted to the side, making way for the panda. Soun was still lost, merely staring before swallowing carefully. "Um, c-can I h-h-help you?"

At the frightful voice of Soun, three more cloaked and masked people stepped into the room, the first had a dragon's face, similar to the Chinese design for festivals, his black hair was short and held a thick fringe at the front. The way he walked, he looked like a soldier, but still held the grace of a gymnast.

The next held a monkey's face with matching fringe to the dragon masked boy, however there was a braided pigtail at the back of his head. He took a moment to pull his mask away revealing the most beautiful blue eyes that mirrored the deepest ocean and he sent a small smirk that made Nabiki weak in the knees. "Hey Pops, you're making them scared," he offered in annoyance while stepping into the house.

Last was a boar mask and had his hair all pulled back into a long ponytail that cascaded the length of his back to his just below his butt. He sighed, before pulling away his mask, revealing an overly feminine face with soft brown eyes, following the boy with the monkey mask closely. "I still don't get what was so important to be here, Ranchan," the man... scratch that. The voice purely feminine, and Nabiki found herself reassessing the person's profile, spotting the telltale signs of breasts beneath the cloak, 'a woman!'

The man in the Panda mask pulled his mask free and affixed it to his right shoulder without the use of string. Nabiki merely assumed it to be velcro as she didn't hear any other noise. The last to remove his mask was the man with the dragon's face, who was a bit pensive. Slowly, he pulled his mask away to reveal coal black eyes, a stern face and a tight gaze that spoke of serious business.

"G-Genma?" It was Soun that spoke as he followed the surprisingly dry quartet into the family room. None of the four made a sound as they walked, with the exception a suddenly smiling Genma.

"Soun, my old friend! The years have been good to you, it seems," Genma cheered while taking the Tendo patriarch by the shoulders and slapping them merrily. The man with the panda mask pulled out a set of glasses with strings that wrapped over his ears as he and Soun happily made small talk and headed for the gathered family.

Nabiki gave off one last shiver at the tense air before making her way into the common room and taking her seat between her curious sisters. There were already tea cups set in the center of the table and a large pot of boiled water, the only think left was dispensing of the tea, and it made the middle sister wonder if maybe Kasumi knew more than she had been letting on.

"Oh my, we have so many guests," Kasumi exclaimed at the four approaching the table, each pulling his and her cloaks away revealing matching uniforms. The girls were nowhere close to recognizing the uniforms, but it seemed some strange mixture of Vietnam era military armor and casual clothing, based heavily on black pants and shirt with flask vests and what looked like the handles of swords sticking from the group's backs. Strange, Nabiki hadn't noticed the handles before, nor had she heard the usual rattling of a samurai's sword or scabbard. After all, such a thing was common in this ward.

Akane quickly began to assess the skill and threat level of the arriving group and if Nabiki was a judge of character, then Akane's paling face said that they were not joking around with the armor and weapons. "Um, w-who are you people?" Akane asked formally, a bit nervous in the presence of the four.

Genma and Soun were lost in some shared humor and still hadn't managed to sit down yet, leaving the boy in the middle, with the monkey mask from before to speak up, while the girl with the boar mask was to his right and the dragon masked boy was on his left. "Sorry for the strange arrival, we were on a mission before being detoured. Saotome Ranma," he offered kindly, gesturing a nod from his formal, samurai-like seated position.

"Kuonji Uk-" the boar-masked girl was saying before three matching cries of "Ranma" split the air. The girl wiped her ear with a pinky and a frown. "Yeah, he's Ranchan, alright," she offered before reintroducing herself. "Like I was saying, Kuonji Ukyo."

The third newcomer frowned as he looked at the hungry eyes of the girls lingering on Ranma's form and coughed lightly, gaining the attention of the ladies. "Kumon Ryu," he offered tightly.

"So, Ranma-san, the post card you sent said you were in China," Nabiki offered, interest in her eyes. "What were you guys doing there?"

Ranma shuffled a bit, nervous under the leering eyes of the three, not to mention the scathing glare he was getting from Ukyo, to his side. "It's uh... Well, we were there on business. Kind of," he offered, his voice husky if a bit uncertain in answering. As he rubbed at the nape of his neck, he gestured towards the table. "Mind if I get a cup of tea?"

"Oh my!" Kasumi called out with a light blush as she was forced to take her off of the muscle-bound boy, those eyes that spoke of an age beyond his years. "I-I'll pour it for you," she offered while setting the cups out and pouring the tea informally. They weren't here for a ceremony, that much was for certain.

Ranma thanked the girls kindly, his smile getting each to flush in turn while Ukyo and Ryu rolled their eyes in annoyance. "Why am I not surprised? You have fangirls all the way out here in Tokyo," Ukyo grumbled under her breath.

"F-Fangirls?" Akane asked, her hentai senses tingling. "You're not a playboy are you?" she asked dangerously, her eyes storming over.

Ranma coughed, barely managing to prevent himself spewing the tea in his mouth as he sent a dark glare at Ukyo. "No! I'm not a playboy! And, Uchan, there's no way I can have fangirls here! I don't a reputation around these lands," he returned hotly, his eyes screwing tightly closed in annoyance.

"Oh? So, you're famous, Ranma?" Nabiki asked, her money sense tingling. Something about Ranma spoke of having a lot of money and being worth even more. She wasn't sure what it meant, as usually a person's worth was equal or less than the assets that were possessed.

Ranma rolled his eyes while Ryu smirked. "Ha, infamous is more like it," Ryu taunted in a tight, deep voice while he pulled out a thick book titled "Bingo". It took him a few moments to open to a page with Ranma's glaring eyes and he placed the book on the table, its pages somehow remaining open at the same page.

***Saotome Ranma

A-Rank Shinobi

Affiliated with Kirigakure no Sato (Village Hidden in The Mist)

Bounty: 12,500,000 dead, 13,000,000 alive

No Other Details Known***

"T-Twelve million, five hundred thousand dead! What the hell is this?!" Nabiki shouted in fright. 'Who carries his wanted poster around? What's with the Village Hidden in Mist?' Nabiki asked herself as she reeled. A wanted criminal was in her house... Worse than that, he was a known shinobi in whatever dark circles that he traveled!

Akane slowly edged her way from the table, hoping to call the police while Kasumi merely smiled and nodded. "The Elemental Nations? That's such a long way from here," she offered warmly, her stride never broken.

Nabiki found her mind short-circuiting much like Akane's own was doing at present. "K-Kasumi-chan? What are you talking about?" Nabiki asked in concern.

Kasumi merely smiled at her sisters softly. "I had a friend from there once in primary school," Kasumi offered by way of explanation.

The incredulous expression shared by all around the table brought a pause to the conversation. Eyes narrowed around the table, the three new teens sending looks to one another seemed to expres entire conversations. Finally, it was Ukyo who spoke up. "Kasumi-san, what village was your friend from?" she asked, her hand toying with the handle of a katana.

Kasumi closed her eyes cutely as she considered the question and thought back to it. However, before an answer could be given the fathers reached the tale, sitting heavily and a single glance from Genma released the tension in the three teens on his side. "Sorry about all the old men talk," Genma joked merrily before pulling a cloth and wiping his glasses.

"This is my boy Ranma," Genma called proudly, gesturing to the boy in the middle. "He's currently sixteen, Jounin."

Soun nodded sagely, his mind tossing out the title Jounin as assuming his friend Genma decided to follow the structure of ninja rather than karate. "I see. My eldest, Kasumi, age nineteen. Nabiki, seventeen, and Akane, sixteen. They're all black belts, but Akane takes it most to heart," Soun offered with a nod.

Genma nodded back happily and impressed. "Alright boy, choose one. She'll be your wife," he informed with a splendid grin on his face.

"W-What?!" Ranma spluttered, this time spewing his tea across Genma's face. "You've gotta be fuckin' kidding me! This is the stupidest thing I've ever seen you do, old man," Ranma challenged, rising to his feet in anger, his deep sea eyes growing tumultuous like raging torrent.

Genma growled, also getting to his feet. "Now see here, boy! You're gonna take one of these girls as a wife take over the Tendo Dojo!" Genma thundered in retaliation.

"Why the hell would I wanna do that?! There's a damn war going on, and I fully intend to take part in it," Ranma returned hotly, earning several upturned eyebrows.

"War? What's going on?" Akane asked in confusion.

Soun shook his head as he had no answers while Ukyo and Ryu shared a look between each other. "Ranchan," Ukyo called out, her hand reaching up to hold Ranma's forearm, instantly calming the boy. "It may be for the best," she suggested.

"For the-..." Ranma paused in rant to look at the faces of Ryu, Ukyo and Genma. There was no surprise in their eyes, only concern for him. "Dammit, you all knew... That's why... Dammit! I wanna go back," he barked harshly.

Ryu sighed heavily. "We can't. I destroyed the bridge," he informed with heavy eyes while Ranma gaped at him.

"You de-destroyed the bridge? Why the hell would you do something so damn stupid?! What about Kisame, Zabuza? What about Mei, dammit?!" he barked out as tears threatened to spill from his eyes. The three other ninja said nothing, only staring on Ranma's form until the boy calmed. "Dammit," he whimpered again before falling to the floor, seated once more.

"It's not our war, boy," Genma spoke softly to his son while gently shaking his head. "It was only supposed to be a training trip, remember?"

Ranma crossed his arms and nodded his head. "Yeah... I remember," he answered listlessly while everyone else around the table stared at Ranma in confusion.

"Okay, so can someone finally explain to me what's going on?" Akane asked, voicing Nabiki's words perfectly.

History of how he became the way he was

Genma gave a heavy sigh. "Sure, I guess it's safe to tell you all about it. It's not like we're going back, right?" Genma joked as he watched Ranma being led away to the furo by Ukyo. The girl, the closest thing he had to a daughter turned to send him a serious look before they both wandered up the stairs. "Well, it all started several years ago, around the time Ranma was four," he began.

 **FLASHBACK**

Genma began to charge away with the Okonomiyaki cart, Ranma sitting happily on top and waving at his playmate. "Hey Pops, wait!" the little boy called out as Ukyo raced her little heart out, Genma slowing down to see what the boy wanted.

"What do you want boy? We have to be going!" Genma called out while running in place, hoping to keep his heart rate steady. Much to his surprise, when he turned to face Ranma, Ukyo was now nestle atop the cart as well, her smile wide as Ranma split his food with her. "Dammit, this is gonna bite me in the ass," he grumbled but continued on irregardless.

Far in the distance Ukyo's father waved farewell to his daughter and turned to consume a jar of sake, quite please with himself.

 **END FLASHBACK**

"So, I took Ranma's betrothed along with us," he informed while Soun looked scandalized. "Turns out, neither of the two actually understood what it meant to be engaged, much less a married couple. So, it was easy to change their ideas to thinking I was just supposed to raise Ukyo in my art style," he informed, earning a sympathetic nod from Soun while the three daughters frowned.

"So, you mean to tell me that you engaged your son to another girl, with the full knowledge that you were going to ditch her in the end?" Nabiki asked with annoyance in her eyes.

Genma grinned and nodded. "Yep, I was gonna get a free food cart out of it to make some money later on," he informed merrily.

"That makes sense," Soun agreed, ignoring with practiced ease the glares his youngest two were sending his way, while mentally shivering at the dark scowl on Kasumi's face. "I-I mean, you need a way to provide for yourself and Ranma. And it's better than petty thievery," he amended, hoping Kasumi would stop giving him such a dark look soon.

Genma shifted a bit uncomfortably, after all it was "the way of the ninja". "Well, after picking up Ukyo, I realized I couldn't cook Okonomiyaki, so we lucked out! While in a certain town I happened across Ryu. Apparently his father had died a few years prior when trying to master a skillset I gave him, so I took the boy in under my wing." Genma paused here to pull out a grimy book with the painted on kanji for "Foolish" written on the cover. "I was supposed to teach the kids according to this book, but..."

 **FLASHBACK**

Genma grinned as he carried a large vat of fish paste. "This Neko-ken is gonna be great," he cheered while the vat in his arms sent its strong odor out and about, earning the attention of a passerby. The man was dressed strangely, wearing the armor of a traditional samurai and he moved to step in the way of Genma.

"A thousand pardons, but I'm especially hungry, and that fish paste smells really nice. Might I buy the barrel from you?" he asked, his eyes following the stolen lot in Genma's arms.

"Uh, I don't know I was needing it to train my kids," he informed jovially, laughing while running a hand over his bald head.

"Listen, I'll give you thirty thousand for it," the man begged, waving the money papers about. Before Genma could think about it he found his mouth answering while his hands snatched the paper bills.

"DEAL!"

 **END FLASHBACK**

"Wait, he paid you thirty thousand ryo for a jar of fish paste?" Nabiki asked, thinking Genma was trying to them all for fools.

The sheepish expression on Genma's face while he rubbed his bald head was priceless. "The only problem you see... His money wasn't local, which is why he was so desperate," Genma informed seriously, as if it were a common occurrence. "So, after tracking him down again, in China, we all followed him through some weird bridge into a rock face."

All eyes blinked at the words.

"W-What?" asked Nabiki.

Genma shrugged. "It happened and we went through as well. Only, the other side dropped us in the Land of Iron, a placed filled with samurai. They didn't take kindly to us trying to make a living there," he explained while thinking up the image of being chased by a dozen samurai after trying to engage his son to some random stranger.

"*Cough-cough* Well, we eventually found ourselves on a boat to the Land of Water where some talent scouts picked out my three kids for the prodigies that they are. They were enrolled in a ninja school immediately while I took some remedial classes. We were established as a Clan officially there and around age thirteen the kids all graduated the year after the Demon of the Mist made his name, sparing my kids the Bloody Mist graduation ceremony," he informed with a head nod and a small smile.

"So, Ranma's actually been out of school for three years now?" Kasumi asked, her eyes twinkling. 'Maybe he's pursued higher education learning?' she considered hopefully.

Genma nodded his head. "Well, yeah. He started as a Genin Rookie of The Year and even though my kids were split into different groups they all made Chuunin in six months! Then came Ranma reaching Jounin and making a name for himself in many battles across the Elemental Nations while I got rid off any witnesses that may have seen my boy. It's why his Bingo sheet is mostly blank," Genma announced with pride in his voice.

"So, what's the deal with this Bingo book any way," Nabiki asked, her eyes seeing dollars as she gestured to the book in question.

Genma began to sweat a bit nervously. "It's a rap sheet between villages of all the notable ninja in a village," he explained.

Nabiki nodded her head. "Okay, so how does someone get such a high bounty? I had a peek through it while you were telling us about you met Ukyo," she informed, her eyes dangerously narrowed. "Only S-Rank ninja, Hatake Kakashi and a Sarutobi Asuma exceed the million ryo marker. Why is Ranma's bounty so high?"

Genma shifted uncomfortably while Ryu smirked, his arms folded, yet not revealing any information. "It's... Well, he... Um, can I abstain?"

Nabiki shook her head in the negative, while her eyes locked on the older man, not at all unnerved at his rank nor the fact that he was a ninja. When money and business were the discussion, Nabiki was the at the pinnacle.

"Well, he sort of stole three extremely powerful and rare kekkei genkai as a side note to his original mission," Genma offered a bit nervously.. He would really rather not go into details.

Ryu scoffed. "Just say it, Pops," he jibed before realizing Genma wouldn't admit it. Rolling his eyes at the man's modesty, something strange in a well-known S-Rank ninja, whose first mission had been an S-Rank assignment that to this day still kept Kirigakure in the history books.

"Ranma has fangirls all over the Elemental Nations after he saved the life of an enemy princess, Kushina Uzumaki! Sure she was married to the Hokage, Minato Namikaze, but our bleeding heart boy saved her from a Kumo and Iwa ambush before escorting her home and tending to her wounds the entire way! That was his first mission as a Chuunin to make things better," Ryu offered.

Nabiki puled back, sitting up and nodding. "Okay, that can piss some people off, but it doesn't explain gaining three... what did you call them? Bloodline limits?"

Ryu nodded his but it was Ranma, returning with wet hair, a simple white kimono and sash alongside Ukyo wearing a lavender version, who continued speaking. "Fangirls are damn worrisome over there," he began.

 **FLASHBACK**

Ranma, age fourteen, rank Jounin, was in a crouched position high in a tree branch in the Land of Fire, his blue eyes gazing like a hawk's into the foliage below. His mission was supposed to be a simple A-Rank, move in, destroy a supply line for Konoha near the border to Wave and leave.

So, why then was he staring down at a squad of Jounin from the same village he was assigned to menace?

The answer could be found by the fact that the three were tracking him. The first was a Hyuuga woman, a few years older than himself was dressed in the standard Konoha Jounin uniform, her hair tied behind her back tightly in the facsimile of an animal's tail. Next to her was a raven-headed Senjuu, a purebred at that with onyx eyes and dressed in the traditional armor her clan wore before the formation of villages. Her hair was cut extremely short and flared out wildly, not unlike an Inuzuka, and she was currently speaking to the Hyuuga girl.

The last of the three was circling Ranma, even now. He could feel her moving around the overgrowth. Without eyes on he, he still knew what she was. It was rather obvious when a flurry of Adamantine Chakra Chains burst from the leaves a tree immediately before a teenage girl with crimson launched at Ranma.

The male rolled his eyes, falling towards the forest floor and flashing through handseals to create a thick fog. "Kirigakure no Jutsu," he called out while his eyes locked with the Hyuuga girl, her Byakkugan just beginning to activate. To his rear, he felt the Uzumaki girl shift to descend after him, falling also into the mist that was enveloping his position.

"Hitomi," he heard someone call out in a near panic, it had to have been one of the two on the ground, either the Senjuu or the Hyuuga speaking to someone else in the battlefield. "He's right in between us! Let's do it now!"

Ranma grimaced in agitation. He had no idea what the girls were plotting, but apparently being between them was a bad idea. He made a high-speed dash to get out of the center, utilizing the Silent Killing style Kiri was famous for to try evading the girls' plotting. Sadly, he was too late as he felt a shift in the Chakra of the area as a three point barrier was erected...

 **End Flashback**

Ranma's eyebrow was twitching furtively as he thought back to that day. "Damn binding seals are the worst thing every invented," he barked harshly while Ryu continued to smirk in humor at something Ranma left unsaid.

"Um, okay, so a few ninjas trapped you in a barrier? You can't have considered it that terrible," Nabiki offered, her quick mind already catching where the story was going her little sister looked lost. She felt it might just be better not to fill in the gaps for Akane.

"What would you know? It took me nearly three days to finally break the seal and capture those damn princesses," he grumbled while folding his arms.

"Listen to this guy whine, yet he was just begging to go back there," Ryu pointed out humorously.

Ukyo shared the mirth of the jibe and added in her own two cents while lightly tapping her lower lip. "You know, I remember Ranchan whining everyday about it before heading their bedchambers," she considered while the boy in question flushed red.

"Not everyone is a damn pervert like you two!" Ranma shouted defensively.

Ukyo laid her body across Ranma's playfully while poking Ranma's nose. "I don't know where you got such a prudish attitude from, Ranchan. I sure never complained and you're supposed to be _my_ iinazuke," she pointed out cutely before winking towards the other girls gathered at the table. "Since Ranchan is gonna a stick in the mud, what do you say we head off to get to know another?"

Nabiki swallowed nervously while Akane blushed a bit at the display of affection, half tempted to brain the boy, while the other half was screaming that it was dangerous to attack him. It wasn't like ninja were uncommon in Furinken, after all the Kuno family employed several and they weren't the only ones. Kasumi smiled prettily as she gathered the dishes and took them to the kitchen. "I would be delighted to get to know you, Ukyo-san," she offered with a mature air.

Akane took the cue and smiled a beatific smile of her own while nodding. "Yeah! I can always use a good sparring partner. If you don't mind I mean," Akane offered and received a gentle smile in return while the three girls headed for the kitchen, the only one remaining was Nabiki, who was narrowing her eyes on Ranma.

"Saotome-kun," she called out, her eyes never leaving Ranma's for a moment. "Just how smart are you? I can't stand idiots," she explained while shifting in her seated position.

Genma slapped his boy hard on the back while chuckling loudly, Ryu now sporting a sour look while crossing his arms. "He was Rookie of the Year, top marks in all fields!" the eldest Saotome offered with a hearty laugh.

"One damn point in taijutsu and I would have been Rookie of The Year," Ryu grumbled in annoyance while clambering to his feet. "Hey, I hope you left some hot water, Ranma," he tossed out over his shoulder as he headed for the upstairs furo.

Ranma rolled his eyes while returning Nabiki's speculative gaze. "I'm smart enough, Nabiki. I'll never be a scholar or med-nin, but I'm one of the best tacticians and a seal and barrier specialist," he offered by way of praise, his chest swelling in pride.

Nabiki nodded her head and tapped her chin. "Uh huh. Do you know math, handwriting, calligraphy, at least a second language?" she pondered while ticking the points off on her fingers. The confused look in Ranma's eyes was nearly answer enough.

"I know both Mandarin and Cantonese Chinese, my calligraphy is piss-poor, but legible. I'm fairly decent at simple math since I never needed more than addition and subtraction. Is that good enough for you?" he asked while pulling out a scroll with a strange array of lines in a circular pattern. "Ariel-chan helped me with learning sealing techniques, which is damn good if I say so myself, he offered as he channeled his Chakra into the parchment.

Nabiki frowned at the small explosion and stared in awe at the revelation of the massive stack of books and parchments that suddenly appeared, piled neatly on the dining table. "Whoa, where did all that stuff come from?" she whispered before realizing that her father and Ranma's father were now gone, leaving her alone with Ranma.

The pigtailed boy sent her a roguish smile that had her heart fluttering. "It's called a sealing technique," he informed while plucking a few books from the stack and a blank notepad. With them set to the side, he flashed through a couple handseals before locking the objects once more within. "It's not something many from here can even wrap their heads around. Essentially I convert Chakra energy into a three dimensional pocket that holds whatever objects I desire. The more things I put in, the more Chakra it requires," he offered with a simple shrug.

Nabiki nodded dumbly. So much for thinking the boy an idiot! That sounded like something sci-fi cadets would kill to understand! While she was busy in her thoughts, Ranma opened a book and placed it in front of Nabiki, tapping a spot on of the pages. It was circled with black ink and made the girl peer closer.

"Fuinjutsu, or The Art of Sealing, is said to be the most complex jutsu system, and aside contracting the Uzumaki Clan, most villages suffer greatly without a seal master or expert," she read, before looking up at Ranma who was smirking in that same cocky way he had earlier. It set her teeth to grate against themselves just looking at it, yet if the book were true, then he had more than earned it. "Do you have any books on sealing from beginner and up?" she asked, her mental pride demanding that she show up her possible fiance.

Ranma shrugged as he closed the book, his fingerless gloved hand pointing at the cover, stating it was a basic concepts book, leading to storage scrolls. "You can keep it, I've got a copy," he informed. His words made her look up, suddenly realizing he was no longer wearing the kimono from before, but instead a simple pair of black pants, a strange symbol of four wavy lines on his buckle, his short-sleeved shirt was red with a large monkey wrestling a dragon stitched into the front. As she noticed earlier, his hands were now in leather gloves with the fingers cut free. His hands were calloused heavily, yet they were dexterous.

Nabiki found herself lost as she stared at the boy's hands, they seemed tattooed, but as she looked at the strange patterns, she realized it must e some seal that he drew on them. Before she could think better of it, much less stop herself, Nabiki found her hands holding Ranma's right hand, slipping her own fingers through his and comparing the sizes and the texture. It was warm and it actually felt _right_ to have her hand in his.

"Oh my," Kasumi drawled while stepping into the room. She flushed as she moved to the table and grabbed a handbag, a light pink dusting on her cheeks as she looked at the clearly nervous teens, frozen on the spot and attempting to imitate statues while shivering. "I forgot my bag! But, don't mind me. Nabiki-chan, please don't be too forward with Saotome-san, you haven't married yet and it would e improper," the eldest sister admonished before hugging and kissing Nabiki's cheek and departing.

 **Tendo Dojo**

Akane smiled as she sent kick after kick at Ukyo, each low being avoided with skilled precision. "HA! Hiyah!" she belted loudly, expressing her kiai while Ukyo began to shift her forms.

"You're leaving too many openings, Akane-chan," Ukyo admonished while reaching her arms through to poke at Akane in the belly, taking the time with each strike to tickle the bluenette in good humor. Ukyo's smile was quite healthy as she enjoyed passing through Akane's guard. The young woman loved teaching and was actually just approved for a role change into being a Chuunin instructor at the academy upon completion the mission they had just completed before abandoning the Elemental Nations.

Akane huffed while giggling, trying her est at closing the openings while she renewed her assault. "Is... Is being a... a kunoichi hard?" Akane asked between strikes while trying to impress the clearly more skilled girl.

Ukyo shook her head softly while taking evasive actions, judging the strikes again. "Much better, Akane-chan!" Ukyo enthused cheerfully before answering the question. "Nah, the ninja world is easy to get into, the tricky part is not dying," she informed with a sage nod. "It's said even a Genin can kill a Kage," she informed.

Akane frowned at the expressions. "Whats... What's a 'Kage'? I mean I know it can be written as shadow, but somehow I think it means something more to you," she asked while pausing her strikes to look Ukyo in the eyes, her soft brown eyes meeting Ukyo onyx orbs.

Ukyo nodded her head before heading for the side of the dojo, Akane walking at her side. The taller girl, Ukyo bent at the waist to pick up a towel and right herself, before tossing it to Akane. "Well, it goes like this: there are levels to being a ninja and missions that correlate to the ranks. First are Academy Students, anyone that is one the ground floor, usually children; but there's nothing wrong with an adult taking the academy courses if he wasn't able to do so as a child," Ukyo offered before sipping from a water bottle and handing the remainder to Akane who swapped her the towel for the water.

While Akane took a long sip, tossing her head back and letting her hair toss side to side, she missed the sight of Ukyo inhaled strongly at the towel covered in Akane's scent. However, a certain eldest sister happened to catch the sight as she entered the dojo, her eyes a bit wider than usual before she calmed. Ukyo waved at the older girl while dropping the towel to the ground. "The next level is the academy graduates, which not everyone does. We consider them ninja in training and refer to them as Genin. They usually only receive D-Rank missions which consist of teamwork building exercises and are usually assigned according a particular skill trait that the student displayed during academy. Ranchan and Ryu were especially skilled in Taijutsu and Ninjutsu, as well as formations planning. But since they were so similar it would have hindered them to pair them in the same team. So so our family was split up at the point." Ukyo informed while Akane took a seat on the dojo floor, sitting on a place mat while Kasumi took time to change.

"What about you? I mean, you're really good at hand-to-hand, which can be called Taijutsu," Akane offered, her eyes holding Ukyo tightly.

The kunoichi nodded her head. "Yeah, I was a few marks below those two knuckleheads, graduated as kunoichi of the year, nearly twenty points ahead of the next girl, and thirty points ahead of the third place shinobi," she informed proudly with her lovely smile never leaving her face at the accomplishment. "Usually I would have been on the same team as Ranchan, as the top male and female are usually put together. But, I excelled as a tracker and hunter, so I was put as the leader of my own squad of trackers," she offered with her eyes closed in remembrance of that day.

Akane frowned as she looked from Ukyo to Kasumi, who was giving a bit of an understanding look. "I don't know if I could have been split up from my sisters like you," Akane returned as she felt her heart clench at the thought of not having even one of her sisters around her.

Ukyo shook her head. "It's not so bad really. I mean, surely you don't spend everyday, all day around your sisters, right?" she offered, actually a bit out of her element as she had forgotten the structure of society in this world. She was certain that this modern society kept families apart for long periods of time... Right?

Akane nodded her head. "Well, yeah. I mean, me and Nabiki go to school together but we only see each other on the walk home and after school," she informed.

"Yeah," Ukyo nodded while patting her palm with a fist. "That's the ticket," she informed with a smile. "Being on a Genin squad is like that! You spend time learning during the day and go home in the late afternoon or late evening."

Akane and Kasumi both nodded in acceptance, as they could understand it easily enough.

"Well, next is the Chuunin rank, the first level in being a _real_ ninja! You get your first battle experiences and make your first kill then," she offered with a jovial smile as the memories played through her mind of her first kill. She had been such a greenhorn! A cute little thirteen year old girl that still thought she could bring culinary items to battle. Luckily enough, she had been captured and forced to cook by a squad of Jounin from Iwa. It gave her the chance to poison the meals with a slow acting toxin. None knew what hit them as they were packing to leave the area.

Akane swallowed nervously a she looked at the girl's hands, seeing imaginary blood on them. "You mean... You've killed people before?"

Kasumi sent a pensive stare towards her sister as well as the young lady now sharing tales and information. Could the kunoichi be trusted sleeping in the same house as them? What about the rest? The boys were certainly blooded if the sweet young lady was, that much was a certainty.

"Oh yeah!" Ukyo nodded her head, mirth in her words as she answered. "I mean, I've been in the stickiest of situations so many times over the last three years it would make you head spin! But, you know how it is, they surround you, so you-" she paused in her words as she retrieved a kunai from somewhere within her kimono and made a series of brutal stabbing motions with such control that not a single fiber of her body moved out of place.

Ukyo's slashes drew to a halt as she adopted a sheepish expression and she laughed. "Oh, I'm sorry! You're not really following me, huh?" she offered lamely, having fallen back on assuming she was talking to a fellow kunoichi, or at least a civilian within the ninja village. You know, people used to the killing.

Akane and Kasumi gave twin looks of shaking their heads.

Ukyo continued to laugh like a loon before putting away her kunai. "Well, there's the Tokubetsu Jounin, a special rank granted to people that high in skill as Chuunin, but not quite skilled enough to trust leading people in battle. And then, all of us are Jounin rank. It means that you can send one of us behind enemy lines and expect the entire fortress to fall within a week. We're the best in combat, we can train anyone up to par in combat efficiency, have the ability to lead entire armies in extended battles and oh so much more!" Ukyo enthused with little stars in her eyes at the pride in her words.

Akane swallowed nervously. "So, like some kind of General or something?" she offered.

Surprisingly it was Kasumi that answered in the negative. "Oh my, no Akane-chan. Generals don't fight, they sit in a desk while ordering soldiers. Jounin sound more like Spetsnaz from Russia or Green Beret and Special Ops in America," the tallest and eldest woman in the dojo informed, her right hand against her cheek while in deep thought.

 **With Ranma and Nabiki**

With the rather intimate moment passing the two had distanced themselves, neither able to look into the eyes of the other at the present, yet the room was still super-charged with teenage hormonal energy. Nabiki coughed while her face, flushed a dark red, was buried in the book Ranma had given her.

Ranma, for his part, looked up at the attractive young woman, temporarily setting aside his own book. Some book consisting of pictures that told stories. Nabiki had called it a romance manga, and the developing story reminded Ranma a lot of that Icha Icha series that had released its first issue just before he came here.

"So, Hikaru and Hitomi are the main characters in this story right?" Ranma asked of the girl, interrupting her studies with his seemingly simple question.

Nabiki looked up and smiled warmly at Ranma while nodding. "Yeah. They are the established couple for the story," she informed while scooting her way back towards Ranma, who was lying on the floor near the television.

Ranma let off a cheesy grin while nodding to himself. "It's a shame, really that this story is so linear," he offered while dangling the manga by a corner. "Gama Sennin, the author of Icha Icha Tactics always writes his stories in a circular fashion. You know you meet people and eventually everyone's story intersects, even if the characters don't realize it," he offered while setting the manga back down, having finished reading the sixteen pages. "Where's the next story at?" he asked.

Nabiki smirked as she took the manga in her own hands and held it to her chest. "You may think it's linear, but stories like this are artistic!" she defended with gooey eyes, imagining a romance as tumultuous as the one in her story. "I mean, what's more romantic than a guy standing up to a crowd of his friends and declaring his love for you?" Nabiki challenged.

Ranma rolled his eyes and flipped onto his back, arms tucked behind his head. "I don't much about romance and all that kind of stuff," he admitted while his eyes closed. "But, I do know art! A friend I met in Iwa taught me all about the explosion that art," he returned, thinking back to the image of the blonde haired teen he had met while infiltrating Iwagakure, the Tsuchikage's apprentice, Deidara.

Nabiki looked at the young man, so relaxed, his lips parted at the bare-most while his eyes clenched tightly. She watched him with voyeuristic fascination as his chest rose and fell, his shirt moving along with the actions. She licked at suddenly parched lips and swallowed hard at her dry throat while a hand touched her own lips. He was so close, she considered.

Not even a few feet separating her from claiming his lips with her own. Yet, even as she leaned forward, hovering over the pigtailed teen, she had to wonder if he was truly what she wanted. To claim him would be a lifelong obligation of taking care of him and he taking care of her. Then of course, he was also supposed to be engaged to that girl he arrived with, yet she wasn't exactly opposed to sharing from what Nabiki could tell.

With one hand on either side of Ranma's head, Nabiki found herself hovering, stalling in thought, and not able to make an action, leaning over the boy as she was. He was certainly fascinating, that was for certain, but what could he bring to the table? How would he be able to provide for her a living?

No... She wouldn't claim him just yet, she decided while backing away. She moved at a snail's pace, tearing herself desperately from the boy while chewing her lower lip. There were just too many questions and unknowns. Besides, there was plenty of time to make a decision. It didn't have to be decided today, tonight as it was.

As she found herself sitting comfortably near Ranma, her sealing textbook in front of her face, she never noticed the slight movement of Ranma as he exhaled deeply, glad that the girl wouldn't try raping him in his sleep like so many others had attempted and done over the last year.

The sound of footsteps revealed Ryu padding his way through the room, dressed in a pair of military fatigue pants, black shinobi sandals, a black tanktop and his Kiri hitae-ite wrapped over his forehead, pulling his hairline back. For a moment, Nabiki thought that she something about his eyes that were strange, no longer the black she was used to seeing. But, as she turned to face the boy more fully, his eyes looked every bit as normal as ever. He grinned down on her and nodded his head before strolling past, heading for the back door that led to the large yard and dojo.

"I'm stepping out, Ranma. I want to explore this world," he offered before his body began to flicker. Literally, it _flickered_! He was standing there, within Nabiki's sight before he faded away like an old tv being turned off.

The middle Tendo ran to where Ryu was standing moments ago and patted the ground and waved her hands in the air. "A trick? It has to be," she complained, her voices droning at the impossibility.

"Shunshin, a body flicker. One moves so fast he leaves an after-image that fades away," Ukyo offered as she led the girls back into the family room, having witnessed Ryu depart. Nabiki swallowed and nodded. It was terrifying the things she was hearing. "Ranchan, you're sleeping already? But the night's just begun," Ukyo called out in annoyance at Ranma's sleeping form, his breathing light and even where he laid.

Akane frowned as she crossed her arms, looking at the _boy_. He must be a pervert, even if she hadn't figured out how yet! "He could at least have gone to the spare room," Akane huffed in annoyance.

Ukyo shook her head before letting out a sigh and pointing at a corner of the dojo compound where the silhouette of Ranma could be seen peering over the wall. "The damn fool," she began while shaking her head.

Nabiki, followed by Akane and Kasumi, gazed from the boy sleeping to his twin watching the grounds for intruders. "What... But, which is the real one?"

Ukyo frowned before her eyes widened in realization. "Right... I keep forgettin'! Ranchan loves using Mizubunshin for scouting and lookout on missions. It's literally a clone of himself while he sleeps. If someone manages to attack his clone, Ranchan wakes up ready for combat."

"But... There's no serious dangers here like that," Akane protested while gesturing grandly with her hand.

Ukyo nodded. "By the way, as fair warning... If Ryu claims a place as his, where ever it may e, don't try sneaking in. He loves setting up explosive traps," she offered. The gathered sisters frowned and took the words to heart, wondering where the teen boy would get his hands on explosives in Tokyo.

"Why do I have a bad feeling about school tomorrow morning?" Akane groaned before heading upstairs towards her bedroom.

Nabiki shook her head while following along, her formal kimono unruffled while she made her way along as well. "Somehow, I think you're right," she complained, her gaze lingering on Ranma's form, sleeping while Ukyo knelt near him before seating herself.

Kasumi merely ushered the girls along. "Hurry up you two, the furo is still going if you want a bath tonight," she encouraged...

Ukyo sighed while pressing her finger into Ranma's cheek. "That was rude of you," she intoned darkly as the three girls went upstairs.

Ranma opened his eyes before sitting up. "I had to be sure I could trust her," he offered, his eyes not showing any signs of the earlier fatigue. "She almost kissed me for a moment," he said, his voice distant while his eyes stared through the ceiling and towards the direction the footsteps were coming from.

Ukyo nodded her head. "Would it really be so bad, Ranchan? A nice simple civilian life? No more insane missions?"

Ranma shook his head while considering it all. The Third Shinobi Wars had been roaring on steadily, and the three years in the field for the kids had been like hell. Haunted blue eyes looked into the onyx of Ukyo's own eyes. "It wouldn't be so bad if it were my choice. But, with things the way that they are now, I have a feeling something's going to happen," he suggested, his eyes turning to peer out of the doorway and into the waning light of the setting sun.

Ukyo sighed and kissed Ranma's lips lightly, pulling away slowly as the boy leaned to follow her retreat. "Something, like what, Ranchan? The bridge was destroyed by Ryu. Himself," she offered. "There's no one following or coming for us," she tried to encourage.

Ranma nodded his head before rising to his feet. "Yeah. I'm going out on patrol," he informed before leaping to the perimeter wall and then away.

 **Ryu**

The vill-... The _city_ was massive. Truly massive! Tokyo, for all of her wards and suburbs was nearly the size of a minor nation and she held as many people within her confines as any major nation, if not more! It was a bit overwhelming for the young Jounin as he leaped from rooftop to rooftop, remaining hidden as best as he could.

"For a place with no seals," Ryu began as he looked at the millions of lights coming from the main city, illuminating the hundreds of towers. "They sure can produce a lot of light."

Something shifted behind Ryu, a shadow resolving itself into a smirking face. A face Ryu was far too familiar with. The other teen was a year his senior and wore only the Kirigakure fatigue pants, combat ninja boots, and allowed himself to be bare-chested. A scarf wrapped the man's neck, hiding his mouth and a Kiri hitae-ite was turned sideways on his head, the knotted tassels hanging loosely to flutter in the wind. Strapped to the man's back was a massive with with a half circle cut out of it.

Ryu gave a groan and a sigh while palming his forehead. "What? You think I'd leave you knuckleheads to yourselves? I saw where Panda was taking you three and eat you to the bridge," Momochi Zabuza informed, his smirk, easily rivaling Ranma's was hidden by the scarf, as was his shark-like teeth.

"Why on earth would The Demon of The Bloody Mist be out here in a world with no real violence?" Ryu asked with a sigh.

"Huhuhuh," Zabuza chuckled darkly as the darkness shifted, bathing his face in the light. If not for his black eyes, the teen was a dead-ringer for Ranma, even down to the pigtail. "I just thought I'd cause some trouble for my darling twin," he informed while stepping closer to Ryu.

"He's supposed to be getting married you know? From now on living a civilian life," Ryu pointed out.

Zabuza shook his head. "Well, we can't be having that, now can we? Who am I supposed to test my skills out against if the 'Princess Savior' gets lazy?"

Ryu rolled his eyes, pulling a kunai and swiping it at Zabuza so fast that the air made a hissing and ripping noise. The kunai was halted by Zabuza's sword while the older man narrowed his eyes. "You could always admit that I'm better than you and Ranma," he offered in annoyance.

Zabuza ran a hand through his hair with his free hand before putting Kubikirinobochou back onto his back and gave off a soft chuckle. "Ranma was supposed to have this sword you know?" Zabuza offered as if it explained everything.

Ryu rolled his eyes. "The dingbat was pissing himself about the shark-splicing technique. Some nonsense about turning blue and growing gills," Ryu informed, purposefully revealing something about Ranma's inner-mind.

Zabuza smirked. "That actually happened you know? Some guy a few years older than me, a Hoshigaki Kisame I believe was the name," he offered by way of explanation. Seeing Ryu''s disbelieving visage, Zabuza merely shrugged. "Anyway, I'm gonna go look for some potential to cause Ranma problems," he offered before vanishing in a shunshin.

Ryu shook his head and leaped away himself, landing on the ground with nary a sound. Several onlookers glanced his way but shrugged and wandered off. "... Okay. What kind of place am I in, where there are no ninja, yet no one even blinks at a man falling from a rooftop?" he asked in confusion while casually strolling along the streets.

A young girl leaped down from a roof in his path, spilling poisonous black rose petals while cackling. "OOH HOHOHOHO!" she cheerfully laughed while twirling a rhythmic gymnastics ribbon in the air.

Slowly, reflective of the dragon mask that he wore, Ryu's face split into a grin. She was sexy, appeared to be same age himself and had a fascination with poisonous plants. Now if that girl wasn't up his alley... With naught but a burst of Chakra, Ryu was in hot pursuit, careful to avoid falling into the path of the rose petals as he chased the girl.

The rooftop race lasted only a few moments before he came to a stop directly in front of the girl, she bumping into his chest before gazing upwards at the much taller teenage boy. "Oh dear? What's this," she asked while stepping back a pace, her long black hair dancing in the wind.

"Sorry to interrupt your fun, miss," Ryu introduced while bowing formally. "Kumon Ryu of the Saotome Clan, and I would be intrigued to learn the name of such a splendid vision of perfection?"

Kodachi felt a light blush grace her delicate features at the words, the obvious flirtations. Granted, the barely sane girl knew that she was beautiful and could turn heads. However, for some inexplicable reason - be it her choice of attending an all-girls school, or the fact that she drugged them before letting them play with Mr. Green Turtle – boys tended to shy away from her. Being on the receiving end of a flirtation was an altogether new experience for Kurobane Kodachi (Kodachi The Black Rose).

Ryu, seeing the flustered look only gave his best debonair smile, tossing his hair in a way that drove the ladies wild. "And, your name would be?"

"K-... Kuno... Ko-Kodachi" the girl stammered as Ryu drew closer, the back of his hand running along the girl's cheek. "Such a fierce, yet beautiful name. Would you care to enjoy the evening dining with me, Kuno-san?"

And just like that, things began to change in the small district of Furinken, Nerima Ward...


End file.
